Barking to Disaster
by Glue Project
Summary: Written for the Plot Bunny contest at A Dragons Lair. Jounouchi has been turned into a dog becaused Seto pushed him into a cursed spring. Now what? [SetoJou] [COMPLETE! Whee!]
1. Prologue

Title: Barking To Disaster (PBFF)  
  
Author: Glue Project  
  
Rating: PG-13?  
  
Pairings: SetoJou  
  
Spoilers: Err. None?  
  
Disclaimer: Nothing mine. Not even the bunny. Written for the Plot Bunny contest thing at A Dragon's Lair.  
  
Summery: TEXT BUNNY #22-   
  
What if the school were to take a fieldtrip to China? Seto doesn't want to go but he's already riding the borderline to disaster from his last warning from the principal about not participating in class field trips. So he's off to China with the rest of the them. Once in China they go to study the ancient springs.  
  
While studying the different springs, Jou and Kaiba get into an argument over something or other. During their argument, Kaiba gets the insane urge to shove Jou into one of the cursed springs. After all, Kaiba doesn't believe in curses. At first, everyone doesn't think that Jou will surface, but when he does, he's a dog! ...  
  
Prologue  
  
------------------------------  
  
Seto wasn't happy. The newest project at Kaiba Corp. was hitting snags, sales were down, and to top it all off, the latest virtual game, released only _yesterday_, had tanked.

Great. Just great. What a _wonderful_ way to start out the day. And he hadn't even left home yet.

Maybe he could take some aggression out on the mutt. Yelling at him and getting him angry with just a few well placed comments always made him feel a little better.

However, that hope was stolen from him once he saw that Jounouchi was absent. Looking to the blackboard, he saw something that made him want to hit his head against the wall.

'MANDATORY END OF SCHOOL TRIP'

Maybe he could get his Blue Eyes to dig a grave for him now...

He knew he couldn't get out of this one. He'd gotten out of the last two trips by _strategically_ hosting a tournament when it came time for the mandatory field trips.

However...there was no way he could slap together a tournament in time. School ended in two weeks. He had thought he would be safe.

The bell rang, and the teacher stood up.

He was a good-natured man, shorter than Yuugi (amazingly, in Seto's opinion) and a bit...wide... around the middle.

The teacher reminded him of...Professor Flitwig?...from the first Harry Potter movie that his brother had forced him to watch.

Forced, as in tying his brother up whist he was sleeping, and then putting the movie in Seto's laptop cd-drive.

Flitwick's human double stood on a chair to gain the attention of his students. All chattering died promptly.

"As you can see behind me, it says 'End of School Field Trip'. This year, it is _mandatory_," he stressed the word while looking pointedly at Seto, "as we are going to learn on springs."

One of the students in the class started to sing. "Oh, the wonderful things about tiggers, are tiggers are wonderful things, their tops are made out of rubber, their bottoms are made out of springs..."

The teacher smiled as laughter coursed around him. "No, not _that_ kind of springs." When the class didn't seem to get the gist, he made 'little' swimming motions until he fell off the chair and reduced the class into laughter once more.

Seto rolled his eyes. The teacher was also the _class clown_. Well, at least it was never boring in here...

The short teacher once again appeared over the edge of his desk and straightened his clothes with a comic air. His comical antics turned serious a moment later. "We are going to go study the ancient springs in China. I want each of you to pair off into groups of three, strictly with those in this room. These other two people that you will be working with will be your partners in the report that will be due on the first day of school, next year. They will also be your 'seat buddies' since the plane which we will be riding in is three seats across." He paused to gain his breath. "Now, move to find your partners."

Seto took a quick count of the room. There were twenty five people in the class, which meant that he had a very good chance of working alone.

Seto leaned boredly on his elbow while reading a book (_Great Expectations_ by Charles Dickens). His fellow students bustled about him, never actually acknowledging his presence.

The teacher noticed. He was also perceptive enough to notice the small downward droop of his mouth and the slight narrowing of his eyes.

Like a kindergarten teacher, he slapped on a happy expression and clapped his hands. "Every one paired up then? In groups of three?" He noticed that everyone nodded and no one noticed the silent one among their happy, chattering mass. That made him crestfallen that they couldn't see that someone was clearly _not_ at all happy. "I'm going to pass around a piece of paper. Write the names of those in your group, and if you _really_ want to, a name for your group." He added another fake, wide grin.

There. Seto would get the paper last.

The rest of the class went off without any major hitches, sliding along smoothly until the bell had rung.

The teacher grabbed up the piece of paper and approached the much taller CEO. "I'm going to put Jounouchi in your group, if you don't mind." He didn't receive anything other than a pair of slightly wide eyes and an almost nonexistent twitch upward of the lips. "Do you want to choose a group name?"

Seto muttered, "Dragon," before continuing on his way to his next class.

The teacher trudged back wearily to his seat, a smile about his face.

But damn, didn't he also feel like he was match-making for trouble?

------------------------------

Hehe. The next chapter jumps a bit in time. However, I liked how this chapter/prologue thing turned out, even if it came out a little odd.

I also like the idea of a rather perceptive and short teacher. Seto seemed a bit too OOC and sulky though.

--Glue


	2. Chapter One

Title: Barking To Disaster (PBFF)  
  
Author: Glue Project  
  
Rating: PG-13?  
  
Pairings: SetoJou   
  
Spoilers: Err. None?  
  
Disclaimer: Nothing mine. Not even the bunny.  
  
Summery: TEXT BUNNY #22- See end.

Chapter One  
  
------------------------------  
  
Thinking back on it now, Seto realized that pushing Jounouchi into a 'cursed' spring while in the middle of an argument, hadn't been very smart. 

Then again, hindsight was 20/20.

Too bad his hind end was currently being chased by a righteously angry golden retriever.

He lunged at the blue trench-coated boy and caught the end of the coat in his sharp canine teeth.

Seto made an odd noise at the feel of his beloved, treasured, and worshipped coat being pulled backwards. His hands flailed in the air wildly and, on luck, grasped the low limb of a tree. He hoisted himself up onto the limb and sat. The golden dog released his hold of the coat and dropped to the ground, glaring up at the tall boy.

Seto winced. "Sorry Jou..."

He never expected when he shoved Jou into the spring that he'd appear five days later as a dog...The thing had appeared so shallow...

Seto didn't realized that he'd voiced those thoughts aloud until he saw that Jou had sat down and seemed to sigh, head bobbing down in defeat.

Then Jou looked up and scanned the area for anyone else. He blinked, then turned his head back to Seto and, for lack of any other sound, whined.

"Are you asking where every one else is?" He received a doggy nod in reply. Seto sighed, before replying with a quick, "Japan." He continued quickly. "Can I come down from here now? Without being torn to shreds?"

Jou seemed to give a devious grin.

"Okay, I _may_...do...deserve it...but it's not like I did it on purpose."

Jou nodded the affirmative.

Seto waited.

Jou just shook his head and padded away...to where Seto's ever-present silver brief case sat. Seto watched from his high perch. With difficulty, Jou opened the sliding clasps with his nose and yipped loudly when the briefcase up and bit him. Then, under Seto's gaze, he nosed the slim black cell phone.

"You want me to call?"

Jou nodded.

Seto swore under his breath. "We're going to have to find some better way to communicate..."

------------------------------

Jou was 'sleeping' on one of the seats of Kaiba Corps. jet. Actually, all it equated to was him thinking, a hobby that he hadn't practiced as of late.

He was still mulling over the conversation he had heard the other having with the principal of their school.

Evidentially, according to what he heard from the principal, Seto had stayed in China by his own accord. That was rather perplexing. The only solution that Jou could think of was that guilt had tied him there. Still...it was a little heartening that his rival felt bad enough about the incident to offer Jou a place to stay while they found a cure.

If there was one.

If he _was_ forever stuck in dog-form, he wondered how much of it was 'true', so to speak. He hadn't gotten any urges to bark and chase at cats so far, but his sense of smell and hearing had definitely heightened. He had color vision, but he wasn't sure if dogs had gray-scale vision or not. He had seen in a cartoon that they had.

He wondered if his lifespan would adhere to dog years or that of a human. The way he figured it, if it was on the dog-scale, he was twoish years old (seven human years to one dog, right?) and had little more than eight years left to live.

Oh yeah, that was something to be bright and cheery about.

He curled into a tighter ball on the seat and fell asleep.

He was still asleep when Seto received a call from Mokuba to pick something up from the store, and was _still_ asleep when they touched down.

Seto carried him to his car that sat waiting.

------------------------------

Um, something that I was thinking of while writing this chapter that I think I must address...Nothing is going to 'happen' between inu-Jou and Seto.

And thanks to Mags and Kumori Sakusha formerly Saelbu for reviewing. (glomps.) This a fast enough update? (grins)

--Glue

**Full Plot Bunny:**  
What if the school were to take a fieldtrip to China? Seto doesn't want to go but he's already riding the borderline to disaster from his last warning from the principal about not participating in class field trips so he's off to China with the rest of them. Once in China, they go to study the ancient springs.

While studying the different springs, Jou and Kaiba get into an argument over something or other. During their argument, Kaiba gets the insane urge to shove Jou into one of the cursed springs. After all, Kaiba doesn't believe in curses. At first, everyone doesn't think that Jou will surface, but when he does, he's a dog! Does this send Kaiba into a fit of sadistic laughter? Does Inu-Jou chase after him, baring his teeth to bite his ass? What's the scenario? Is Jou stuck being a dog? How long does it take them to figure out only cold water can change him back. That is, until hot water hits him again and he turns back to a dog. The cure has never been found. Will they find the cure?


	3. Chapter Two

Title: Barking To Disaster (PBFF)  
Author: Glue Project  
Rating: PG-13?  
Pairings: SetoJou  
Spoilers: Err. None?  
Disclaimer: Nothing mine. Not even the bunny.  
  
Summery: TEXT BUNNY #22-   
  
While studying the different springs (on a school trip to China), Jou and Kaiba get into an argument over something or other. During their argument, Kaiba gets the insane urge to shove Jou into one of the cursed springs. After all, Kaiba doesn't believe in curses. At first, everyone doesn't think that Jou will surface, but when he does, he's a dog! ...

In response to Bakura's review, I edited this chapter slightly.  
  
Chapter Two  
  
------------------------------  
  
Looking up at the bright red sign, he knew right now that he was most likely going to get bitten in the ass for this. Literally.

Pets Mart. He was in the parking lot for Pets Mart.

It was a hot day, and he didn't really want to leave Jou in the car. It would get quite hot in the car before Seto would be able to get the appropriate help he needed inside.

However, waking up Jounouchi would most likely leave him with a hole in his ass.

Decisions, decisions.

Jounouchi would take it wrongly (which he had a right to, considering) and then whatever somewhat illusion of a truce they had would be broken.

Then, Seto got an idea.

He shut off the idling car, got out and went to the passengers side. He opened the door slowly and scooped up the sleeping canine form, and shut the door with his foot.

He carried Jou into Pets Mart, and then stumbled down the food aisle. He then had to partially wake up the sleeping dog to set him on the ground.

Seto then contemplated the grandeurs of...rabbit feed. Mokuba had said something about getting the purple bag.

Spotting the bag, he attempted to pull it off the shelf. Off the shelf it came, with difficulty, and right onto the floor, waking Jou up.

It evidently didn't take Jounouchi long to catch up with what was happening, and he stalked off without Seto noticing.

Seto was more concerned about getting the sixty pound bag to stop hugging his feet. Concerned and spouting quite a colorful array of words.

-------------Jou--------------

_Greeeeeeat_. He brought me to a damn _pet_ store. And I will _not_ eat dog food. Will _not_. I'd rather starve. I've heard what they put in the cheaper brands.

No matter what, I'm not about to chance a taste of plastic garbage bags and poison.

Even without that, the stuff smells bad, and I'm quite sure that the taste buds on my tounge would be quite happy with a piece of perperoni pizza, or a nice grilled steak.

I wonder what he was getting me. Hmm. Lessee. Where's Kaiba...why is that bag of rabbit feed attacking him?

...Rabbit feed?

"Dammit Mokuba...why couldn't you have told me _before_ I went on that damned trip that you were running out of food?"

Heh. Either Mokuba is in a somewhat similar situation, or has a furry friend of his own.

------------------------------

Jou left and found an employee, standing idly, foot propped up on a yellow dolly. Jou got a good idea.

He woke the employee up by head-butting the man's shins. He blinked down at Jou, eyes slightly glazed. The glaze left quickly however.

Having a dog go suddenly from playful to aggressive on neutral ground does that to you.

Jou slowly shepherded the employee two aisles down, to where now only the bag of rabbit feed sat on the floor. He then stopped his growling and grabbed the ankle of the man's pants and drug him towards the bag. He then stopped and looked up at the employee with shining, liquid eyes.

The employee made a great show of looking from the bag, to the dog, then to the two-wheel dolly he was still clutching in his hand. "You," he pointed to Jou, "want me to put that," he pointed from him to the bag, "on here?" He pointed to the dolly.

Jou made an equally great show of nodding.

The employee did as requested, and then stood there, puzzled as to what to do next.

When Jou started to growl again, he backed away and said, although very shakily, "Can't I just follow you?"

Jou of course stopped growling and gave a canine grin at the employee's sudden 'smartness'. He lead the way to the cashier.

The employee followed, dumbfounded.

------------------------------

Seto cursed when he came back down the feed aisle. _His_ bag of yet-to-be-bought feed was _gone_. He cursed further once he realized that Jounouchi was no where to be seen.

"Um," came the voice of one of the cashiers over the intercom, "if someone is missing their dog...um...heh...he kinda went shopping for you..."

Seto quirked an eyebrow and strode towards the registers.

Seeing the golden retriever now known as Jou, calmly sitting beside a rather shaky, pale employee with a purple bag of rabbit feed was enough to stun Kaiba Seto. Correction: He was _flabbergasted_.

Jou then stood. The employee eyed him warily. "Am I following you yet?"

The woman cashier next to him snickered...that is until Jou turned to her, growled, turned to the male employee and nodded. And walked through the register aisle for the feed to be paid for.

The male employee did as requested and turned to Seto tiredly. "He's your dog?"

Seto thought for a second. "No...I'm in care of him though."

The male employee looked at him. "I pity you."

------------------------------

Once in the car, Seto turned to Jounouchi. "You enjoyed doing that, didn't you?"

Jou could only give him a canine grin.

------------------------------

I've wanted to do that scene ever since I thought of it. Jou pushing people around. To help Seto. Hehe.

--Glue


	4. Chapter Three

Title: Barking To Disaster (PBFF)  
Author: Glue Project  
Rating: PG-13?  
Pairings: SetoJou  
Spoilers: Err. None?  
Disclaimer: Nothing mine. Not even the bunny.  
Summery: See TEXT BUNNY #22

Chapter Three  
------------------------------

Seto was starting to get worried. Jou was sure sleeping a lot.

All the way from China, then all the way to Pets Mart, and then once again to the mansion.

Even _he_ didn't get that much jet lag, something he was horrible with.

Stay up all night working? No problem. Adjust to a different time zone? No way.

Maybe he should take Jou to the vet.

Hm. He was just _asking_ to get bit in the ass today, wasn't he?

He just hoped Mokuba didn't say something to offend Jou. He highly doubted that Jou would do anything other than sulk at the younger boy...but there was the paternal/brother side in Seto showing.

Hn. Odd.

After turning off the car, he got out, and once again walked over to Jou's side of the car. On waking Jou up, Jou snapped at him in way of greeting.

"Not a morning person?" Seto held back all his 'mutt' comments. He _really_ didn't want to get bit. "We're home."

Jou understood what that meant.

Time to show Mokuba his fate.

With a doggy sigh, Jou trudged out off the car. After Seto closed the car door, he followed Seto to the door that led to the house.

-----------Mokuba-------------

You know what? Running around the house in your slippered feet is really fun. 'Specially when no one is there to tell me otherwise, or able to see the yard and a half of cloth tied around my neck.

And Niisama's coming home today!

That in itself deserves another long slide across marble surfaces.

...After I jump the rabbit hopping about. The gray thing just looks at me, then hops away to chew on some exposed wires. No problem.

...

...

EXPOSED WIRES?! SHIT!

Step One of good pet care: Pick up rabbit by scruff of neck while supporting said rabbits bottom.

Step Two: Run around like a jack...rabbit...until you run into someone.

Niisama!

------------------------------

Seto blinked at his brother who held a gray furball hidden in his arms. The gray furball itself was chewing on some blue and red wires. "That's healthy."

Mokuba tilted his head to the side, still sitting on the floor, blue 'cape' pooled around him. Seto motioned to the rabbit. Mokuba's eyes grew wide as he tried to wrestle the wires away from him with a degree of success.

In the meantime, Jou had sat down beside Seto with a forlorn look. He prepared himself for the worse.

When Mokuba noticed the retriever sitting there, he looked up to his brother with questioning eyes.

------------------------------

Mokuba, smart kid that he is, didn't ask about the presence of the dog. At least, not with the aforementioned company present.

After the solemn affair of dinner (which consisted of steaks for the humans and dog, and rabbit pellets for the bunny), Seto disappeared for about ten minutes, dog in tow. Once he reappeared, without the dog, Mokuba approached him.

"Seto?"

Seto ran tired hands through his hair which was rapidly becoming disheveled. He sighed. "Those damned springs _are_ cursed." He sat back in his seat, a purple hue beginning to take form under his eyes.

Mokuba perched himself on the arm of the black leather sofa carefully, while still looking at his older brother. "What do you mean?"

Seto sighed. "Remember when I called you?"

Mokuba blinked. "Which time? After Jounouchi 'took a swim' or when he came back out and you told me to get your allergy prescription filled?"

"The latter."

Mokuba scrunched his face in order to help him think. Which only resulted in a comical face. He blinked in surprise. "Didn't you say that Jou was going to spend a little time with us? But..." He froze, eyes suddenly wide with realization. "Oh."

Seto ran his hand through his hair again. "Yeah, 'oh'."

------------------------------

Jou woke up to a sickingly sterile white setting, like that of a hospital. That was what brought him to full awakeness. Thoughts of a hospital, that this had all been a dream concocted up by a concussion or the like.

However, seeing Seto next to him dashed all those trains into multiple wrecks.

Jou sniffed the air, and felt the hair on the back of his neck bristle. 'Vet. I'm at the damned _vet._' Jou turned a glare and growl on Seto without bothering to get up. He didn't have the ambition.

Seto looked down raised an eyebrow at Jou. "Finally awake?"

Jou stopped growling.

Seto looked back to the wall in front of him and discreetly patted the seat next to him. Once Jou heaved himself into the seat, Seto started talking, lightly, so as to not attract attention, despite the fact that it was only them and the secretary in the waiting room. "You've been sleeping a lot--to much to warrant the excuse of jet lag. Besides," he looked around the room casually, "Mokuba was getting worried that you're too thin."

Jou curled up in the seat, about to drift off to sleep. -Mm'kay.-

Seto sat up straighter in his chair and looked around.

Jou was already asleep.

------------------------------

Jou had backed himself into the corner, teeth bared and growling. The doctor was approaching him with a thermometer.

Seto looked uncomfortable. "Wait..." He paused as the doctor tiredly turned to him. "You have to try to measure his internal temperature, correct?"

The doctor nodded, neglecting to notice that Jou had stopped growling and was looking at Seto curiously.

Seto shifted. "Well, why not get a brand new thermometer and stick it in his mouth as you would a human?"

The doctor looked incredulous. "Are you crazy? If he would chop down--and he would--it would break--" The doctor looked down when he was suddenly jarred from his thoughts by Jou hitting the back of his knee.

Jou opened his mouth and let his tongue hang out the side. The doctor leaned down with the thermometer and was about to try to slide it into Jou's mouth when he snapped it closed and growled.

The doctor blinked. "A new one?"

Jou made a ridiculous show of nodding.

The doctor just shook his head, then left the thermometer on the counter as he went to retrieve a new one. When he came back, he had to take the thermometer out of its protective packaging that kept it sterile.

As a good doggy, Jou trotted forward and opened his mouth once more. He accepted the thermometer in his mouth with no problem, and was careful as he gently closed his mouth around the thin piece of glass. He didn't let himself grin too wildly as he slid himself out of the doctors grip and laid down, thermometer still sticking out of his mouth.

The doctor stumbled out of the room to get the secretary to make sure he wasn't dreaming.

Seto smirked. "Glad I mentioned something?"

Jou wagged his tail in agreement.

Seto's smirk widened. "Good puppy."

Jou's tail stopped it's movement and his twin brown eyes narrowed.

"Careful," Seto warned. "Don't chop down hard on the glass." He paused and only Mokuba would have been able to recognize the lack of movement that was a shudder. "You don't want to have glass dug out of your gums."

The doctor walked back in, secretary with camera in tow. The latter just turned her head to the side and snapped a picture before walking back out again in slightly jerky movements. The doctor gently took the thermometer and checked it. "Every things in order..." He turned and addressed Jou directly. "You just need to eat."

At that, Jou barked happily and pranced around.

Seto twitched. "Hey, Jou, you're not a reindeer. Stop being Prancer or Dancer."

Jou froze.

"Good puppy." _Smirk_.

Jou whirled on him, growling and fur raised.

Seto didn't seem to be disturbed. If anything, he seemed slightly more relaxed. 'Ah, normalcy.' He leaned forward. "Well, pup, you're sure not a mutt."

Jou glared, but still sat down, body turned towards the doctor.

The doctor blinked, then gave out his report.

------------------------------

Mokuba glomped his older brother once he came in the door. "Well?!"

Seto grinned as he steered his brother towards the kitchen while carrying a small bag. "The vet said that Jou was healthy, despite the fact that he weighs much less than he's supposed to. I think that it's because he was in that damned fountain for a week for his metamorphosis." He hesitated, then looked around for Jou. Seeing him not in sight, he continued quietly. "He also said that there are signs of abuse."

Mokuba's eyes went wide, but he didn't say anything. He attention was then diverted to the bag cradled in Seto's arms. "What's that?"

Seto smirked. "Dog food. Puppy's still sulking in the car because of it. He doesn't know that it's made up completely like a vegetarian diet."

Mokuba's eyebrows joined. "Puppy?"

"Jou. Can't call him mutt since he seems to be purebred, and if I'm 'nice' all the time, he'll think the apocalypse is about to commerce." He set the food on the counter, and leaned forward slightly. "I think that the only way to currently bring back a familiar aspect of life to him is to fight with him a little."

Mokuba looked sad. "But...he'll hate you."

Seto had his back turned to Mokuba as he started to cook dinner. "It's not anymore than I deserve," he said quietly.

------------------------------

It's turning slightly angsty here, no? It's like a roller coaster here. 

--Glue


	5. Chatper Four

Title: Barking To Disaster (PBFF)  
Author: Glue Project  
Rating: PG-13?  
Pairings: SetoJou  
Spoilers: Err. None?  
Disclaimer: Nothing mine. Not even the bunny.  
Summery: See TEXT BUNNY #22

Note: School in Japan ends in March and starts up again in April. Just for time reference.

Chapter Four  
------------------------------

As it turned out, Jou's almost constant sleeping was also a cause of the cursed spring. It had taken loads of energy from Jou himself to complete his transformation, and was still completing his transformation after the vet visit, even if it was mostly complete by that time.

Now, the day after the visit, Jou's sleepy state was abating, and he woke to a beautiful guestroom at the Kaiba mansion. Shaking himself awake, Jou trotted out to the smell of bacon, hopeful that he would be sharing in that specific aspect of breakfast.

Since it was Mokuba cooking, and Seto was already off at work, the younger Kaiba was able to give Jou a plate of bacon with a wink and a shush. He then went into a dramatic monologue that Jou enjoyed much, about how he had just 'dropped' a plate of bacon on the floor and now 'had to throw it away'.

The plate was licked clean by the time that Mokuba had finished (over) acting.

-Thanks.-

Mokuba turned, startled.

Jou was already gone.

------------------------------

Jou had done his best to write a note while armed with a pencil in his mouth and paper between his paws. The resulting letter was a scribbled mess almost readable, but hey, it was the thought that counted right?

Now he was traveling the downcast streets of Domino, watching the world with a slightly different air. Down here, so close to the ground, everything seemed dirty, contaminated. Granted, this was a _city_, and that everyone did their best to keep it clean, it still had a gloomy air to it.

That, or the impending rain clouds factored into that.

He carefully transverse across the busy streets, standing patiently at the crosswalks for the green walking light. He'd also stopped quiet a few children from walking out without their parents notice, and one had decided to ride him across the street, all the while shouting, "Pony!" in her tiny little voice.

He found all of that amusing.

Now, however, he stood in front of his apartment complex, a dingy, rathole of a place. He padded up the broken cement steps, a sense of 'forbidden' cloaking the area. The door leading in had the lock broken out--always had--and he continued up the steps. On the fourth flight, he departed from stairs that went up another level, and continued down the hallway. At the door marked 412, he nosed it open, surprised that it had admitted him in.

He was almost immediately nauseated by the stench of alcohol and cologne. He wrinkled his nose in disgust and followed the noises of a tv somewhere nearby.

His father sat among mountains of beer cans and wine coolers, voice rising and falling as he talked to those he could only see within his drunken mind. He pitched another bottle at the wall and it spilt into millions of diamond shards, light fracturing off them as they stayed suspended in the air for a fraction of a second before they joined their brethren on the floor.

The wall was covered in horrible peeling wallpaper that was dotted with amber beerstains and purple shards of glass. It was also covered in a not so pretty substance of brownish-red.

Thankfully, he could concentrate on the beer scent and not on that that paralleled copper.

His father turned his head to the side, and in a slurred and jumbled voice, started conversing with the table lamp. It had a yellow shade.

Jou almost wanted to laugh. His father found a companion in a lamp and thought that it was actually him. Not that his father was ever sober enough to know otherwise, of course. His father most likely didn't even know that Jou's name was Katsuya. It was so much easier to call him the name that they shared in common, the _only_ thing they shared in common.

_Katsuya_ left. He couldn't stand it anymore.

-----------------------------

Seto found Jou's note on the floor of his own room. Evidentially Jou had used his canine sense of smell to find it. It took the work of a minute to figure out that the messy pencil marks went something along the lines of, 'Was bored, went walking.'

However, it was now raining outside.

And rain in March is cold.

-----------------------------

Seto had walked out of the house without an umbrella. He didn't regret his, but he did acknowledge that the rain was chilly. He just pulled his blue duster closer to himself.

He had called everyone that might have seen the golden collarless puppy. That'd been just _fun_, explaining to Yuugi and co. that Jou was now a _dog_ and that he _was not making fun_ of him.

He just hoped that Jou hadn't been taken to the pound.

Now he was just searching the streets in an attempt to find him. 

He stopped at the gates of the park. He shrugged mentally and entered.

After a half hour of walking, he could hardly see, but continued anyway. He could see a figure sitting on a bench. 

When he got closer however, he recognized the mop of blond hair. He stopped right in front of the slouching form in disbelief.

It was Jou, looking as he had right before Seto had pushed him into the spring. Hands jammed into the kangaroo pouch of the green Red Eyes hoodie, wet blond hair flat on his head. His jeans were faded and severely worn at the knees. His tennis shoes were now gray and cracked, the soles independent and flapping.

Seto let the thought that Jou looked peaceful like that, asleep and not running his mouth.

He flipped back a bit of Jou's bangs before lifting him up in his arms, almost tripping at how heavy Jou actually was. Not heavy in a _bad_ way. Just heavier than his too-thin dog form.

Seto took him home.

Heh. He couldn't say 'the puppy followed me home' now.

-----------------------------

Well, that was fun.

--Glue


	6. Chapter Five

Title: Barking To Disaster (PBFF)  
Author: Glue Project  
Rating: PG-13?  
Pairings: SetoJou  
Spoilers: Err. None?  
Disclaimer: Nothing mine. Not even the bunny.  
Summery: See TEXT BUNNY #22

Chapter Five  
------------------------------

For the thrid day in a row, he woke up to a beautiful guestroom within the Kaiba household. He just laid there and clumsily cuddled with the pillow.

Yesterday...yesterday he had visited his...father. And decided that he didn't like his family name anyway, so why not drop it? Kinda difficult given the circumstances though...

"You going to sleep all day, Puppy?"

Katsuya turned and saw Seto leaning against the doorframe, a wide smirk on his face.

He flopped the other way and pulled the covers up over his head.

One. Two. Three...

Katsuya flipped upright, and looked like his was mimicking the Macarena or slapping away invisible flies on his arms. His mouth dropped open as he inspected each of the slightly tan fingers, running his gaze up his arms. He jumped out of the bed...and fell onto his pajama-covered rear.

Seto snickered. "Puppy forget how to walk?'

Katsuya growled.

"Forget how to talk as well?"

Katsuya blinked. He coughed, then said, rather intelligently, "Talk?"

Seto thought a second, and then spoke, as if to himself. "I wonder if Puppy remembers what breakfast is..."

Katsuya suddenly found his legs and ran all the way to the kitchen.

------------------------------

Both Seto and Mokuba sweatdropped at the rate at which Katsuya was eating.

"Umm...Jou..."

Katsuya blinked up, a piece of French toast hanging haphazardly out of his mouth. "Hmm?"

Mokuba fidgeted. "Aren't...aren't you going to get sick?"

He shook his head violently, which lead him to once again take up residence on the floor. Where he quite happily finished his breakfast.

After consuming all the food in sight, Kastuya jumped to his feet, granted a bit wobbly. He grinned drunkenly. "I'm going to go take a nice hot shower!" He grinned and ran off in the direction of his room, and, more specifically, the bathroom that adjoined his room.

He left both Mokuba and Seto, the area around the pair destroyed.

------------------------------

Seto hummed slightly as he chopped up the vegetables for dinner. Dinner was his meal, breakfast was Mokuba's, and lunch was a toss up.

He was making roast beef and vegetables for dinner tonight, not something he did very often. It was also something that Jou wouldn't realize held any significance, although Mokuba would.

And thinking of Jou....he hadn't seen him since right after breakfast this morning.

Seto dumped the beef into the slow cooker. It would take a few hours now.

Washing his hands, he glanced at the clock. It was a little before two.

He walked to his little brothers room, Mokuba sitting there playing video games. The fluffball was nipping at his GameBoy SP, attempting to eat it.

"Hey, have you seen where Jou is?"

Mokuba hastily paused the game and turned to his brother. A confused look crossed over his face. "No, I haven't."

"Hm." Seto paused. "I'll go see if he's in his room."

Mokuba was already playing his video games again.

Seto strode silently down the hall, passing his own room. He knocked on the door to Jou's room and received no response. Cautiously, he opened the door, only to find the disheveled bed and a few slightly opened dresser drawers. Padding further into the room, he saw that the bathroom door was still closed.

A tad big more than slightly worried, he went over and knocked on the bathroom door and once again received no response. "Jou? Are you okay in there?"

Silence.

"Jounouchi?"

-_Katsuya_-

Seto blinked. That was the second time that he'd heard something that wasn't exactly said. He was starting to wonder if this whole 'dog' business was affecting his sanity.

He shook his head. "Jou, if you're in there, say something."

-Pfft. Fat chance.-

Seto wrinkled his nose. Dammit, his sanity was already gone then. He knocked again. "Jou? If there is _no_ sign of life within there in the next minute, I'm going to find a way to get this door open."

He waited a minute.

Silence.

He sighed. "Okay then." He turned the knob. _Locked_.

He nodded. That was to be expected. And having _no_ idea of any other alternative, he decided that a door was a cheap enough thing to replace.

He kicked the door a few times before Mokuba showed up with a screwdriver and a hammer. Handing the latter item to his brother he sighed.

"I'll attack the doorknob, and you can attack the door."

Seto did have to admit that this worked better. Even if he didn't understand the purpose of taking out the doorknob.

Doors of this sort were made up of two pieces of wood less than an eighth of an inch thick, the remainder filled in with cardboard.

That door was ripped to bits in record time.

Stepping through the doorway, he expected a corpse to be floating in the bath tub.

Not a golden retriever that only _looked_ like he wanted to be dead.

------------------------------

Oy. This is shorter than most. (pouts)

Heh. Time to answer reviews/questions. In no particular order at all.

**Optimistic girl94**: Nope, it's not the end. I think that there are...3?...chapters left. THe contest I'm writing this for ends on the end of the week... (sweatdrop)

**Mandapandabug**: He's...most likely underweight as well in human form...just not _that_ bad.

**KitsuneChan8888888**: That's the bit I love the most. Go ahead and write something similar. I'll enjoy reading it. The only reason _I'm _writing this is for the contest. And thanks for adding this story to your fav's. (glomps)

**DarkElvenQueenEternity**: Heh. Thanks. Truth be told, this is the most reviews I've _ever_ gotten on a story.

**Felidae**: I was considering having Katsuya just barking at him...alot.. Hmm. 

**Anime Crew**: It's not finished yet because...it's not... 

(glomps everyone else that has reviewed.) **Thankies!!** And now I must go to write up the next chapter...

--Glue.


	7. Chapter Six

Title: Barking To Disaster (PBFF) 7/7  
Author: Glue Project  
Rating: PG-13?  
Pairings: SetoJou  
Spoilers: Slight mention of Pegasus' island. Slight.  
Disclaimer: Nothing mine. Not even the bunny.  
Summery: See TEXT BUNNY #22

This is the final chapter, and twice as long as the others to boot. And to all those wondering about the water thing, I was just following the bunny. I've never watched Inuyasha.

Chapter Six  
------------------------------

Seto felt his shoulders droop. "Damn it." He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

Mokuba looked about as sad as his older brother.

Katsuya was swimming in the over-full bathtub, looking about as dejected as one could get. He was, once again, in dog form.

Seto sighed again. "Jou, you'd better get out of there."

He slowly clambered out of the tub, golden fur shining.

Seto and Mokuba dried him off carefully with towels, not saying anything. He was then dressed up in a sweatshirt, since there was not a hairdryer in the entirety of the mansion.

Seto then slipped a green nylon dog collar around Katsuya's neck, with the explanation that he didn't want the other sent to the pound and euthanized.

Mokuba then departed, most likely to take care of the bunny that had decided to make a presence.

The poor, once-again dog just trudged out to his bed and cuddled with the pillows, to fall asleep in misery.

Seto sat in the bathroom for a little bit, looking at the tub in suspicion. He quietly dipped his hand into the water and then withdrew it rapidly.

The water was still hot.

------------------------------

Dinner was a somber affair. Seto had forced Katsuya to sit in a seat at the table, and then put a plate of roast beef before him.

Mokuba got sadder, if possible, at seeing that. 'Last time Niisama cooked that, we'd just gotten back from Pegasus' island...'

They ate silently and afterwards, Seto excused himself from the table.

Being only six in the evening now, Mokuba cleaned up the dishes before asking if the other wanted to watch a movie.

Katsuya just padded his way back to his room, tail dragging on the ground.

------------------------------

Seto was in his room, sitting at the white table that his black laptop sat on. His long fingers flew over the keyboard as he searched for his answer.

"Hmm...Kaiba-san...ATTACK!! ROUND HOUSE KICK!!...er...nope, never mind." That was the home computer. With another false lead, evidently.

"Have to figure how to un-integrate that fighting game from your system..."

"ATTACK!! ICE MAGIC!!" 

Mokuba, when he was little, had accidentally put one of his PS games into the upgrader for the home computer, the one that ran throughout the entirety of the house. It really hadn't been that bad at first. In fact, this was the first major occurrence of its 'game dialogue'.

"I SHALL ATTACK YOU BACK! FIRE DEATH!!" That was another one of the computer voices. Seto thought that he had counted three.

"ICE POWER!"

"FIRE DOG!"

"ICE HUMAN!"

...

Silence.

"Are you trying to tell me something?"

There was a purring sound from the computer.

Silence. Then...

"ATTACK!"

------------------------------

Seto looked at his watch as he padded silently down the hall. It was a few minutes past midnight.

Hopefully the golden puppy would be awake by now. He'd been asleep for most of the day, not that Seto blamed him.

He knocked on the door. "Jou?"

There was a whimper and a flopping sound.

"You awake?" Silence. "I think I have a lead."

Katsuya rushed over to him.

------------------------------

Seto was lounging on the couch, waiting to find out if the lead was a good one.

He had told the other to try taking a _cold_ shower instead of a _hot_ one.

Simple problem, simple logic. Right?

However, since it was going on one in the morning, his eyelids had taken a liking to be heavy. There was also the idle thought, that his idea hadn't worked, floating around his brain.

Just as he was about to fall asleep, he heard an odd sound. One that was suspiciously akin to bare feet on marble. Running.

He opened his eyes right before he was tackle-glomped (when rather hyper, Mokuba called it a tahglomple.) by a very hyper, very happy...rather unclothed blond.

Or did a towel swung around the waist and a collar snug around the neck count as clothing?

Seto was wrenched to his feet by the shorter boy, who then proceeded to squeeze the breath out of his chest.

"Happy to be human?" Seto wheezed.

The blond relinquished his deathgrip on the other and nodded violently. His hair was matted to his head. Then he paused and a curious expression flittered onto his face. That was replaced by a blush a moment later.

You see, in all that hugging, Katsuya's towel had loosened from its knot at his side. It would have slipped down if it wasn't for Seto's hands holding the loosened knot...

Katsuya blinked, and then his mouth flopped open and shut worthlessly.

Seto smirked. "Can you take the edges of your own towel now?" He watched amused as Katsuya scrambled to do so. "Now lets find something to _dress_ you in."

He grinned as they walked to his room. He was no longer sleepy. This was going to be too much fun to fall asleep during.

------------------------------

Seto grinned as they sat on the couch. It was three in the morning, and both could tell that it would take awhile to fall asleep.

Katsuya's hyper mood was rubbing off on the normally impassive CEO. Either that, or the oxygen he was deprived while Katsuya glomped the other was reverting his nature back to those of his own age.

Whatever it was, it was a nice change of pace.

Seto was surprised that they hadn't woken Mokuba up yet.

Katsuya was wearing red button-up shirt and a pair of simple black pants, held up with a belt.

Seto, in his giddy state, thought it was vaguely amusing how disheveled and carefree Katsuya could make his most professional clothes look. Well, the way his hair currently stuck up all over the place added to that effect as well.

Katsuya decided to fly sideways and glomped Seto again. Grinning from ear to ear, he pinned the brunets arms down to the sides of his chest.

Caring nothing for balance, Seto flopped back, suddenly rather tired. He yawned.

Katsuya soon followed. He quirked a lazy smile at the brunet, still in glomping mode. "'D'analine only lasts for so long..." he murmured.

Seto nodded, eyes falling faster than the blond's.

As he drifted off to dream land, he was aware of a warm something pressing against his lips.

------------------------------

Mokuba blinked once he entered the living room. He then rubbed his eyes, decided it was real, then ran to get his Polaroid camera.

Seeing his brother and their human guest cuddling on the couch wasn't something that he was likely to see again, right?

...Wait...human?

Looking through the viewfinder, Mokuba could clearly see that Katsuya was indeed human. And smiling at that.

Katsuya's head was resting on the CEO's shoulder and his hands had moved up to keep the other shoulder company.

Seto, on the other hand, had his head tipped back and the muted sounds of--gasp!--snoring! came from his slightly parted lips. That, and his left hand had come up to rest on the others waist. A slight, contented smile had chased away the perpetual frown and smirk from his face.

Quite a change. Quite a change indeed.

Sure that he had captured more than one good picture for the use of blackmail-matchmaker later, Mokuba ran and hid the pictures in the drawer of his desk. He then checked his socks for tread-less-ness and grinned.

He ran all the way from his room, through the marble or wooden-floored hallways, right into the living room. He then used all that build-up speed to crash right into Seto and Katsuya.

Both boys jumped at the black-haired kuriboh-clone's attack.

It took Katsuya the work of a minute to figure out that, yes, he hadn't dreamed up last night (this morning, actually), and that yes, he was now human again.

Neither Mokuba nor Seto had a chance.

The blond puppy glomped them both viciously in glee.

------------------------------

Katsuya, Seto found out, was a good persuader, almost as good as Mokuba. With their joint power, they could rule the world...

Having found himself on the receiving end of two of the powerful patented puppy-eyes look, Seto was forced to take Mokuba and Katsuya to all the arcades in Domino until they found the mu--no...the _puppy's_ friends.

Having also found himself on the end of another such look had him _carrying_ his brother all throughout Domino, the blond in the lead.

Seto snickered at a thought. 'Puppy plus collar and lead equals happy puppy.' But where to find a lead?

After the commotion-glomping this morning, and before the synchronized looks, Katsuya had calmed down enough to get it understood his _aversion_ to his..._fathers_ name. Both Mokuba and he had accepted it without question, blocking out memories...

Seto just decided to stick with 'Pup' and the like, since that was easier to remember. The other didn't seem to hold any complaints against it.

Mokuba frowned at first, until he released that it was a step up from 'mutt'. Sort of like a promise that Seto wasn't going to forget that _he_ had gotten the blond cursed.

Why? For not _believing_ in curses.

Seto was glad that he had found out that his employees were actually capable of handling most of the low-priority things he usually did. It was different, not working as much, but these past three weeks had been...odd in themselves. Mokuba had been rather smug today he had noticed though.

Katsuya suddenly took off, and Seto had to run to keep up, keenly aware of the heavy weight of his brother on his back. He leaned forward a bit to get a better sense of balance. In doing so however, prohibited him from seeing the red-shirted back until his nose was firmly pressed into the crimson silk.

In a dizzying cycle, Seto relieazed belatedly that he had longer legs and could run faster because of it. However, he could smell strawberries, so he was content to just...stay..there...until the flashing lights and haze of pain went away...

Suffice to say, he wasn't too happy at being picked up by two people and carried into a game shop that he couldn't even see. All he was _currently_ aware of was the swirls of colors that assaulted him, and the noises that ricocheted off the insides of his skull.

"That was quite some tumble, ne, Yuugi?"

"Um hm. And they didn't even get scratched up!"

Seto heard a groan beside him, the source of the strawberries. "Feel like hell though. You try taking a noise-dive on concrete."

There was a whisper across Seto's mind, but he discarded it.

"I agree Yami...that is odd. Good, but odd."

His vision had cleared, but everything was still too bright. Mokuba sat on a high stool, a deck of cards in his hands, seemingly unaffected. Honda was leaning against the wall, and Yuugi against the counter.

He shook his head, and it cleared further.

What a way to start off a somewhat friendly visit.

------------------------------

Seto was surprised to find his shields down. He actually hadn't relieazed it until his brother had mentioned it on the way home, and by then it was too late to resurrect the steel-faced CEO façade. He didn't even try. With a sigh he realized that he'd been without it for about two weeks anyway.

The blond was still acting hyper as ever, the metal jingling of his collar and tag punctuating this.

Funny. After having him calling the blond a mutt all the time, he didn't even put up a fuss about the collar. Maybe because the rules had changed, and that this was a precaution...

Rules had changed? Pfft. _Right_.

But his thoughts lingered on the one last thing he remember, if it was that, before he fell asleep this morning.

He was suddenly jolted from his thoughts by the blond, who Seto was considering calling him the Glomping King.

Seto arched an eyebrow at the blond whose arms were, once again, around his chest.

They were back home now, sitting at the table, waiting for the pizza to arrive. Seto had a cupful of hot, steaming coffee in his hand.

A second later, he didn't and Katsuya's hair was matted down with the brown liquid.

He sputtered, letting go of the teenage CEO.

Seto just smirked.

------------------------------

The remaining two weeks of vacation were spent like that. Katsuya glomping the two brothers awake, then dragging Mokuba (and Seto if he could) to the game shop, with only minor protests from the latter.

In those two weeks, they were able to find out that while water could change Katsuya's form from human to dog, and visa versa, other liquids could not. Example: coffee.

still, it became common practice for the CEO to take a thermos full of cold water and a thermal bag of cold water balloons to Kaiba Corp. should something come up.

The subject of Katsuya's father was never brought to light, nor the subject of every leaving the mansion.

The two brothers were in silent agreement.

Katsuya was welcome in their home.

------------------------------

Katsuya sat on a bed, computer humming as it logged into his instant messaging program. The computer beeped 'Wingardium Leviosa!' to alert him that Yuugi was logged in.

Seto had thought the reference to the professor fitting.

He grinned a moment later as an image of Yuugi appeared on the monitor, taking up most of the screen.

Yuugi laughed once both of the computers had synchronized. "Have a little trouble with water again, ne?"

Katsuya quirked his eyebrows together and drew his hand through his hair. It snagged on a pair of angular golden ears. He gave an easy laugh. "I was cooking ramen noodles and the water caught me." He grinned. "Sorta forgot about it, ya know? It's easy enough to stay human-ish."

The rest of their conversation focused on school, which was going to start up in a few days. They glossed over the subject of all that had happened during the rather eventful break and the report that was due on the first day of school.

However, Yuugi had to leave when it became apparent that Yami had gotten his star-shaped hair stuck while putting on one of their shirts.

Yuugi left with a passing remark that equaled Yami looking like Honda.

There was an indignant squeak before the line between the two computers was severed.

Katsuya chuckled as he turned off the computer and sat back on the bed. He gave a squeak when the bed shifted and a pair of hands caught him around the waist. He then relaxed, relieazed that it was stupid to think it was anyone other than the person whose room he was currently in.

"Have a good talk, Pup?"

Katsuya gave an ecstatic nod, golden ears bobbing.

Seto chuckled. "I think it's the golden retriever in you that makes you so hyperactive."

Katsuya laid his ears back before giving in with a smile. "Hmm. Mayhaps."

Seto stood up from the bed, hand snared through Katsuya's. The puppy blinked at him in surprise.

"We have to go to the school to have your address changed."

Katsuya paused to take in the meaning of those words. Then he jumped up and glomped the taller boy.

Katsuya was _home_.

------------------------------

Ner. Lame ending. I still like it though.

--Glue Project


End file.
